Story Highlights

The prevalent theme this past week at One Bills Drive was actually set in place in the moments following Buffalo’s upset of the Atlanta Falcons last Sunday.

Coach Sean McDermott was asked whether he felt that victory may have been one of Buffalo’s best on the road since the glory days of the franchise. McDermott couldn’t help but smile, and he said, “I’d say let’s hold your horses.” Meaning, let’s tap the brakes here and not get ahead of ourselves.

The Bills are 3-1, they lead the AFC East, and they were actually a topic of conversation in the national media beyond the usual cursory mentions. Yes, the Bills are one of the surprise teams in the league, but no one in the locker room is paying a whole lot of attention.

“That’s one of the things that coach McDermott preaches to us each and every day, is just our consistent approach,” said quarterback Tyrod Taylor. “Trusting the process, not making one game bigger than the other. We’ll continue to keep preparing the way that we do. We’re going to continue to keep practicing the way that we do, and we’ve just got to continue to keep pounding away day by day, focusing on getting better than we were the week before and the day before.”

Three ...

1. Will the Bills be able to throw the ball effectively? Buffalo’s passing game is pedestrian at best, and this is no secret. Now, without injured WR Jordan Matthews, things get a little more troublesome for Tyrod Taylor. The Bengals have a solid secondary led by CBs Dre Kirkpatrick and Pacman Jones, and safeties Shawn Williams and George Iloka. They will make things very difficult for WRs Zay Jones and Andre Holmes, neither of whom have been winning enough battles. TE Charles Clay is going to have to step up again and be Taylor’s go-to target, and the Bills will have to find ways to get LeSean McCoy involved in the passing game. Last week in Atlanta he had only three receptions. Up front, the Bengals can bring pressure with DT Geno Atkins (3 sacks) and DE Carlos Dunlap, plus pass-rushing LB Carl Lawson. While the Bills might have LT Cordy Glenn back, the line will be challenged and the Bills are going to need to move Taylor out of the pocket and have him throw on the run.

2. Which Andy Dalton will show up? The Bengals quarterback is a wildly polarizing player. There are some observers who think he’s been a career-long mediocrity, and other believe he’s been a solid NFL quarterback for most of his six-plus years in the league. The answer is probably somewhere in the middle, and this season, he has been the very definition of polarizing. He was absolutely awful in Cincinnati’s first two losses as the Bengals failed to score a touchdown against Baltimore and Houston. Then, he was excellent in the loss to Green Bay, and spectacular in the beat-down last week of Cleveland. In the last two games, he has completed 46 of 57 passes for 498 yards with six TDs and one pick. Dalton is working well under new offensive coordinator Bill Lazor utilizing a quicker passing game, and that may be a move that turns Cincinnati’s season around.

Andy Dalton has played fantastic in the last two Cincinnati games.(Photo: Scott R. Galvin-USA TODAY Sports)

3. Which offense can rise up and get it done? This figures to be a low-scoring, defensive struggle. Both of these defenses have played superbly in the early going. Buffalo leads the NFL in fewest points allowed per game, is fifth in yards per play and has created seven turnovers. The Bengals have been nearly as good as they rank third in both points and yards per play, and they’re also third in total yards and passing yards. Finishing drives will be paramount for both sides because there may not be very many opportunities to score, and in that situation, the Bengals have better playmakers on offense, specifically WR A.J. Green. It could very well come down to special teams, with field position being critical, and field goals determining the outcome, and with Stephen Hauschka, the Bills would like their chances in that scenario.

and Out

The Bills have entered the playoff conversation thanks to their 3-1 record. They remain atop the AFC East despite New England’s win on Thursday, and getting to their bye week at 4-1 would be more than even the most jingoistic Bills fan could have hoped for. However, they are facing a 1-3 Bengals team that will be a little more desperate, playing in its home stadium, and it might be asking a bit much of Buffalo to go on the road and win back-to-back games. Here’s the thing about Cincinnati: This is not a terrible team. There’s plenty of talent on both sides of the ball, and what happened in the first two games may have been an anomaly. Let’s throw out the blowout over the Triple-A Browns last week. Look at what the Bengals did at Green Bay, a game they should have won, but a game where they fell victim to the sorcery of Aaron Rodgers. Rodgers isn’t wearing a Buffalo uniform. MY PICK: Bengals 23, Bills 20.

By the Numbers

4.73 – Yards allowed per play by the Bills’ defense, which ranks fifth-best in the NFL behind only the Steelers, Broncos, Bengals, and Cardinals.

6 – Touchdown passes thrown by Cincinnati’s Andy Dalton in the last two weeks, with no interceptions. In the first two games, he had no TDs and four interceptions.

15 – Consecutive quarters without committing a turnover for the Bills offense, a team record.

Talking points

► Bills LB Lorenzo Alexander on the team not letting the fast start go to their heads: “I’ve been a part of teams that have started 6-2 and not made the playoffs. It can happen and turn on you quickly. And I think that happens when guys lose focus or start reading the press clippings, start making everything become routine and not being committed and trying to figure out ways I can get better and really dissecting their own game.”

► Bills QB Tyrod Taylor on the importance of using play-action in the passing game:
“It is definitely a big part of our offense. Showing pass looks out of the multiple runs that we’ll show, as well to keeping the defense honest. Over the past four weeks we’ve played a bunch of groups on defense that have fast flowing linebackers. We’re trying to get those guys to suck up underneath the rush, and try to get something behind those guys.”

► Bills DE Jerry Hughes on playing with a chip on his shoulder: “I feel like you carry it every game, that’s just the way you play football. Each Sunday we go out with a little chip, a little nastiest. Anytime you call my name, you put me on your team, you’re going to get me, 110 percent. I think that’s just the way I play, that’s just the way I was raised, honestly. If I am going to go out there I am going to give it my all, I am going put it all in.”

Quote to Note

Bills center Eric Wood on the team not yet earning national respect: “That’s fine. I probably pay attention to the media a little less now at this point in my career than I did (earlier). I might not notice as much now, but it doesn’t feel like it did last year at this point. We have a really consistent group of guys on this team, where I don’t feel like it would make a huge difference, like within week to week effort if we were 1-3 or 3-1. We’ve got a pretty mature team led by a coach that isn’t letting us forget how much we still need to grow.”